At the award ceremony of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award’s 19th edition, April 29. Image: SZBA
By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson
Deadline for Submissions: September 1
See also:
Murakami, Barakat in the UAE: Sheikh Zayed Book Award at Abu Dhabi
UAE: Sheikh Zayed Book Award Draws 4,000+ Entries for 19th Edition
As Publishing Perspectives readers will recall, the April 29 winners’ ceremony during the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair had an unusually robust turnout by members of the emirate’s leadership, with Japan’s Haruki Murakami on-hand to accept the program’s body-of-work honor as Cultural Personality of the Year, and the 
intensely popular Lebanese author Hoda Barakat on-hand to accept the Literature Award for her novel Hind or the Most Beautiful Woman in the World, published by Dar Aladab in 2024.
Like Murakami, Barakat spoke to a certain, unusual level of popular appeal to the 19th Zayed Award list, and some may hope to see such notoriety to be part of the 20th-anniversary, in addition to the usual panoply of industry-leading academic work.
The record-breaking 4,000+ nominations for the 19th edition of the award came from 75 nations, including 25 Arab countries. A brace of first-time participating markets included Albania, Bolivia, Colombia, Trinidad and Tobago, and Mali.
Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, chair of the department of culture and tourism in Abu Dhabi—the Language Center and Zayed Award operate under the department’s aegis—is quoted on our news today (June 24) of the nominations opening, “As the Sheikh Zayed Book Award enters its 20th edition, we celebrate its remarkable journey and enduring impact on the global cultural and literary landscape.
Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak
“Its mission is more relevant than ever, to foster dialogue and knowledge, advancing the Arabic language, and championing the exchange of ideas across boundaries.
“As we look to the future, the award remains a powerful force for shaping minds, enriching lives, and inspiring future generations. In the years to come, the award will continue to reflect the values that lie at the heart of our emirate’s vision.”
And bin Tamim, in opening the new award cycle, says, “The 20th edition of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award marks a significant milestone following two decades of uninterrupted cultural work and achievements that have left their mark on the Arab and international literary and intellectual scenes.
Dr. Ali Bin Tamim
“Under the patronage of our wise leadership, the award has established itself as a prominent platform for knowledge exchange, cementing the power of the written word to shape human civilization and the future. And today, as we launch this new edition of the award, we reaffirm our commitment to supporting creative minds, preserving the Arabic language, and promoting culture as a cornerstone of comprehensive development.
“We’re proud of the tangible impact the award has made on the cultural landscape in its 19 years, during which we received more than 30,000 nominations from at least 80 countries and honored 136 winners across its various categories.
“These figures are not mere statistics, but a living testament to the growing confidence the award inspires among literary and intellectual circles. They assert the leadership role the award plays in advancing authorship, translation, and critical studies, underlining its contributions toward promoting cultural dialogue, in line with the United Arab Emirates’ vision and mission to support human development.”
Points for Those Considering Nomination
Author Hoda Barakat accepts her 19th-edition Sheikh Zayed Book Award at the ceremony in Abu Dhabi, April 29. Image: SZBA
Nomination conditions for the Sheikh Zayed Book Award stipulate that:
Each candidate may nominate one work to one category, and the work must not have been nominated for any other prize in the same year, either directly or through a representative.
Submitted works should also carry a valid International Standard Book Number (ISBN) to ensure the author’s intellectual property rights are protected.
The award will not be granted to any work that has previously won a major Arab or international prize, but resubmission is allowed, provided the stipulated time gap has been met and new copies of the work are submitted.
Regulations also allow authors to self-nominate or be nominated by publishers—who may submit an application only for works they have issued—on the condition that the publisher receives written consent from the author.
Nominated books need to have been published within the last two years at most, and should not have won any major international awards.
Original submitted works should be written in Arabic, with the exception of those submitted under the “Editing of Arabic Manuscripts” category, which can be in other languages, as well as the “Translation” category (whether translated into or from Arabic) and the “Arab Culture in Other Languages” category, in which works published in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, and Russian are accepted.
As for the “Cultural Personality of the Year” award, candidates must be nominated by academic, research, or cultural institutions; literary bodies and universities; or by three prominent intellectual and/or cultural figures. Nominees for all other categories must personally fill out the nomination forms on the Sheikh Zayed Book Award official site.
To submit a nomination to the 20th edition of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, or for more information about the submissions process and forms, visit the site, which offers information in English and Arabic.
As Publishing Perspectives readers know, the winner of the Cultural Personality of the Year award is presented with a gold medal, a certificate of appreciation, and a prize of 1 million United Arab Emirates dirhams (US$272,286), while each winner in the other categories receives a prize of 750,000 dirhams (US$204,215), along with gold medal and a certificate of appreciation, “in honor of their outstanding creative and intellectual contributions.”
More from Publishing Perspectives on the Sheikh Zayed Book Award is here, more on the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Center is here, more on Arabic literature is here, and more on translation is here. More from us on publishing and book awards in the international industry is here.
Publishing Perspectives is the world media partner of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award.